Jacoby Dakota Shaddix (born July 28, 1976) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, sporadic actor and former television presenter. He is best known as being the founding member and the continuous lead singer of the California-based rock band Papa Roach since the band's formation in 1993.

As well as being the lead singer of Papa Roach, Shaddix is also officially the lead singer of a post-hardcore band called Fight the Sky under the pseudonym 'John Doe'. However, the band has not been active since 2003 and there have been no publicly made updates regarding the band's current status since then.

Shaddix served as the host of the MTV show Scarred for the entirety of the show's cycle, presenting both seasons and all 20 episodes of the show, which spanned from April 10 to September 18, 2007. Shaddix would ultimately leave the show due to touring demands with Papa Roach. The name of the show was based on the Papa Roach song Scars.

Shaddix is one of the co-owners of a rock-inspired clothing line with designer Jeff Henry called 'Lovers Are Lunatics', with the focus being described as "to create a brand that represents the rock community and showcases their unique creative vision".[1]

Shaddix is the founding member of Papa Roach. He formed the band with former drummer Dave Buckner, bassist Will James, and guitarist Ben Luther, in 1993. Luther was replaced by current guitarist Jerry Horton, and by 1996 Tobin Esperance had replaced Will James following his departure.[2] In 2007 Dave Buckner's role was filled by Tony Palermo, leaving Jacoby the only original member in the band.[2] The band's name Papa Roach, derives from Shaddix' step-grandfather, Howard William Roatch, who went by the nickname 'Papa Roach'.[3] Howard committed suicide in 2006 following a diagnosis with an unspecified form of advanced stage cancer. The song 'Roses on My Grave' was written in his memory. Before releasing their major label debut album Infest, Papa Roach recorded and published an EP in 1994 entitled 'Potatoes For Christmas'. In 1997, their first full-length album, entiltled Old Friends from Young Years, was released.

Shaddix stopped using rapping in later Papa Roach songs. In an interview in 2004, Shaddix said that he became disenchanted with hip hop and what it represented in the media and stated that "I just want to be a rocker",[4] also stating in 2009 that it was safe to assume he wouldn't be rapping again.[5] However, in 2012, Shaddix started rapping again in the album The Connection.[6]

Shaddix performed as the lead singer of a post-hardcore band called Fight the Sky from 2002 to 2003 under the name 'John Doe'. The band was intended as a side-project of Shaddix where he could display the heavier side of his vocals. The band's line-up consisted of Shaddix as the lead singer, Wade Khail as the lead guitarist and backing vocalist, Ali Abrishami as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist and Jay Ingram on the drums and percussion. The band had signed a record deal to Papa Roach's self-owned label El Tonal Records and would enter the Velvet Tone Studios in Sacramento, California to record their debut album Seven Deadly Songs between January and February 2004. Since recording the album in 2004, no publicly made updates have been made regarding both the release date of the album and the future of Fight the Sky.

Shaddix currently resides in the Sacramento metropolitan area with his wife Kelly (married since 1997) and their three sons named Makaile (born March 24, 2002), Jagger (born September 13, 2004) and Brixton (born September 17, 2013). He has two brothers named Bryson and Trevor.

Shaddix has had problems with alcohol and drug abuse, but has been sober since 2012.[7] He is a devoted Christian and has been known to sing Christian hymns and songs at public events.[8] He is fluent in Spanish.

Shaddix has stated that in the first year of his life, he and his family were homeless.[9]